Supervisor thanks authority for support during trial

David L. Kraft, who has supervised the Greater Pottsville Area Sewer Authority plant for 17 years, thanked the authority Wednesday for its support during his recent trial involving allegations from the state attorney general's office.

On June 4, a Schuylkill County jury ruled Kraft did not try to mislead the state Department of Environmental Protection by falsifying records in 2009 and 2010.

"I came here to thank you for what you did," Kraft said at the meeting of the board of directors held on the third floor of City Hall on Wednesday.

"We want to thank you for your service, first of all. It's a tribute to you and your strength that you withstood this," Ian Lipton, authority chairman, said in response.

"I couldn't have done it without you," Kraft said.

"It's what we needed to do and it was the right thing to do," Lipton said.

On May 25, 2012, the state Office of the Attorney General, Harrisburg, charged Kraft with two third-degree felonies, one count of tampering with public records and one count of unlawful conduct under the state's Clean Streams Law, according to the criminal complaint filed by Donald A. Hentz Jr., a special agent with the Office of the Attorney General, Bureau of Criminal Investigations, Environmental Crimes Section.

After a two-day trial, the June 4 verdict ended the state's effort to prosecute Kraft for what it said was his submission of incorrect data on chlorine discharges from the authority's North Manheim Township plant.

"You would think that the attorney general would have more important things to do," Lipton said.

In other matters at its June meeting, the sewer authority decided to hire a new insurance carrier for the 2013-14 fiscal year, Travelers Insurance.

In 2012-13, the sewer authority hired Glatfelter Insurance Group, York, with a premium of $68,479.

"We've had them for several years," said Timothy R. Yingling, the sewer authority's executive director.

Travelers Insurance offers a premium of $58,794.

"That's a saving of $9,685 over last year's premium," Yingling said.

In other matters, Yingling said sewer maintenance conducted on the 700 block of North Second Street on Tuesday wrapped up Wednesday.

"They cleaned the whole line for the whole block. It was blocked but we don't know what was blocking it. And there was nothing visible that was wrong with it," Yingling said.

The blockage, reported Monday, only affected one property, 720 N. Second St., according to Yingling.

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